POLL: Should religion have NO place in politics?

One need only look at the places where religion has a leading place in politics to vote against it.

 

It should have no place in anything if you ask me! The bloody trouble and strife that mindless ritual causes.

 

I understand you don't really comprehend the exact meaning of certain words in English. Your problem, not mine.

 

As it is extremely obvious you have no intention of participating in this forum appropriately, and wish to engage me in actions that risks my reputation as a valued member I feel you are most certainly unworthy of the risk of infraction and will instead remove your contributions from my view.

Buh Bye.

 

I guess you want me to keep my views to myself. Seems consistent with your view of what society should be like. Bye.

 

Ideologies and philosophical movements can become absolute and exclusive exactly like religion ... think to Soviet Communism ... theoretically that was the perfect atheist-lay-deterministic evolution of human society. Moscow fought it out against the bigot West ... But at the end the Soviet system surrendered.

 

Yes. And so can supporters of a football club. Or anything else in the world. If everything can be a religion then nothing is a religion.

I'm quite happy to keep religion as a way to honour gods.

 

No, I'm not sustaining that everything can be a religion, I sustain that any ideology can show the negative aspects which history tells us religions have showed through the centuries [why to deny this?]. It's about being "like a religion" as for these negative aspects.

So, what are we going to do?

Are we going to ban from politics all ideologies? Or are we going to keep on judging behaviors [in case of crimes] without judging intentions on a prejudicial base?

 

What does this have to do with whether secular humanism is a religion?
Dogmatism and fanaticism is always bad.

Penso che non ci siamo capiti.

 

Mine is a "preventive reasoning" [you know, conservatives like to do preventive this and preventive that ...].

What I find odd it's that "Secular". Why this need to specify? On the net there is even an organization about Secular Humanism and this is not above suspicion to be an ideology with some extremist aspects.

To generalize, anyway, I've never said that Humanism was, has been or is a religion, I'm saying that, if it becomes an ideological movement, it can show [as well] the mentioned negative aspects usually associated with a religion.

 

I think it might be an American thing. I have always known it as humanism.

Looking a bit around I found a story about secular humanism being classified as a religion in the USA. But it is a matter of rights more than anything.

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/20...t-court-declares-secular-humanism-a-religion/

 

It has no place in governmental practices, but keeping it out of politics is impossible.

 

Thank you, finally a voice of reason in what has looked to me like a pissing contest the last 40 or so posts

Unless you remove religion from the people how is it possible to remove it from politics?
For those who get all hot and bothered by religious symbolism in on or around government institutions ... are you really offended? REALLY? Is your own sense of self so small to fret over something so ... well ... small?

 

To do the above would be against the First Amendment. If I were forced to never make religious references, it would interfere with my free exercise of religion.
Amendment I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

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There are secular arguments for almost all of the so-called religious legislation.

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That violates the First Amendment, which guarantees the right to free exercise of religion.


Amendment I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

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Where is Easter an official holiday? Yes, Christmas is, but Easter isn't. In case you didn't know, Easter is always on a Sunday.

 

Now I get it. I think you're right about this curious "Secular Humanism" [with capital S and H].

 

Well, welcome to PF.

I have learned here that there are magnitudes of atheism much more sensitive than my own. I used to argue with them, but I have learned it's a completely wasted effort.

They are some of the most dogmatic ideologues here.

 

Regrettably, all too often not very good ones.

 

Except its not so small to somebody who views religious symbols in on or around government institutions as wholly inappropriate and in some instances offensive.
That's the thing. . Its not surprising that a member of the majority thinks its no big deal after all they are "Christians".

Yet what may seem inconsequential to the majority, can be extremely consequential to the minority who in this case are not Christians.

 

You're using a loophole here to force your beliefs on everybody else. The fact that atheism is not classified as an official religion does nothing to negate the fact that it is frequently practiced as a religion by secular antitheist fundamentalists. Look at the way you've even worded your post. Look at the first sentence. "As a committed and practicing atheist...." What does that sound like to you? Sounds like a religion, doesn't it? We have a First Amendment for a reason. To protect everyone's beliefs. Not just yours.

Additionally, for what it's worth, atheism has caused more destruction throughout human history than all the world religions combined. Communism is an atheist philosophy.

 

I contend it is a small person who finds a "symbol" to be offensive. Isn't it time we grew up?
Tolerance among us non religious types is just as important as between religious types.

 

I'm fine with religion influencing a person's politics, it's just another data point. But applying ecclesiastical law to civil government (such as opposing SSM just because Yahweh said so) is wrong. Religion should always be part of a person's life (unless they're an atheist) but it shouldn't, literally, rule it.

 

I grew up in the deep South. Like everywhere in the South, we were under "Blue Laws". That means that the only stores open on Sunday were gas stations, convenience stores and pharmacies. You could go to a convenience store and buy a banana, but not a spatula. Movies, and any form of entertainment was forbidden by law. In downtown Atlanta, bars and night clubs closed at 11:45 PM on Sat. night. Shopping molls and retail stores were closed. Auto dealerships were closed. Colleges were closed.

That went on for all of modern history, and did not come to an end until the mid 1970's, and even then Blue Laws died slowly. I lived with the restrictions on my freedom by Bible totin' religious dictators, and I never want to have to deal with their laws again. Religion must be removed from ALL law in this country.

 

Some religious members think that because we have a National Christmas Tree and we have a White House Ester Egg Hunt that this somehow makes the U.S. a CHRISTIAN NATION.

Well in the late 1700's and 1800's and all the way deep into the 1900's that's basically what the United States was even though such a thing was against the tenets of the U.S. Constitution....a Christian Nation.

But now as the population of the U.S. has become so multicultural and diverse....people understand that although a person has a right to practice their own form of religion as long as it doesn't violate U.S. Law....the U.S. can never allow itself to be classified as any religions nation.

The National Christmas Tree is kept as decorating a tree with beautiful lights and glass balls and other trimming is no longer viewed as a Christian Practice as it never was.

People started bringing trees into their homes and decorating them and placing gifts under them as a celebration of the Winter Solstice which is usually on Dec. 21st....and people have been doing this for 1000 YEARS before Jesus was even born!

And as I posted before.....doesn't anyone ever wonder what the HELL a basket filled with green grass and eggs and chicks and bunnies along with a home decorated with bulb plants such as Tulips, Daffodils, Lilly's...etc....has to do with Jesus being Crucified!!!????

ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!!

Easter is actually the Pagan Holiday of the Celebration of the Spring Equinox and the Fertility Goddess ESTER!!

Today....kids happily run around trying to find brightly colored eggs that mom and dad have hidden be they real eggs or foil wrapped chocolate.

I personally know a huge number of people who are NOT CHRISTIAN who decorate a tree and have an egg hunt in the spring.

I have Jewish friends who not only celebrate Passover but as well have a big decorated tree with lights and presents underneath for their 3 kids because as they have told me....."The kids want a pretty tree just like everyone else."

AboveAlpha

 

What are you talking about "end up like the Brits"?

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/12/uk-one-of-worlds-least-religious-countries-survey-finds

Religion has a place in politics. It's one thing to preclude certain roles, but it's entirely another to say it has no place whatsoever.